Ground clamp



. 14 1943; P. ANDREW s L I. s; 1 I. v

' GROUND CLAMP Filed Deg. 23, 1942 I woman Patented Sept. 14, 1943 25,29,503 Y GROUND CLAMP:

Daly Andrews'and Benjamin 1). Heeger,-

Mountain Grove, Mo.

. ,Application'l leceniber 23, 1942,-Seriall\lo. 469,954

s' cla s; (01. 24-253) This invention relates to. a ground clamp and has relation more particularly to aclamp of this kind especially designed and adapted to usein connection with electric welding, and itv is .a particular object of the invention to provide a clamp of this kind whereby the ground cable used in electric welding is of azcharacter to eliminate leakage and poor connections, .par-. ticularly when the clamp is engaged on rusty or scaly steel or dirty metal, 1

Another object of the. invention is to provide a clamp" which can be employed withequal facility in connection with work of varying thickness within acertain range and wherein the clamp, while particularly designed as a ground clamp, may be used for other purposes when desired.

The inventionconsists in the. details of construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts of our improved ground clamp whereby certain importantadvantages are attained, as will be hereinafter more fully set forth.

In order that our invention may I bethe bet- I ter understood, we will now proceedto describe the same with reference to the accompanying drawing,, wherein-;.

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of a clamp constructed in accordance with an embodiment of our invention, a second position of one of the parts being indicated by broken lines; and

Figure 2 is a view in top plan of the device as illustrated in Figure 1.

As disclosed in the accompanying drawing, I

denotes an elongated base member of desired dimensions and which is continued at one end by an outwardly disposed extension 2 terminating desired frictional contact between thefaces a and b.

In the present embodiment of the invention the face bis on a plate or lay it! of brass welded, brazed orotherwise rigidly secured to the; adjacent end proper of the arm fl.

. Secured by the screws ll or the opposite side faces of the rear or enlarger portion 9 of the arm 1 are the "corresponding legs IIZof the substantially U-shapedsprin'g mem hers. M. As is clearly illustrated in Figure 1, the connection of each of the legs 82 with the arm 1 is rigid so that there will be no swinging movement of a spring member M with respect to the arm 1. 1 Each of these springmembersM has its intermediate or 'base portion l4 extending across a side face of the post 6 and,

as is clearly illustrated in Figure l, the second or rear leg I5 on each of the spring members M is shorter than the length of the leg it. The free end portion of the leg l5 ofeach of the spring members M is secured by a screw it or the liketo the side face of a head I! carried by the inner extremity of a lever l8 which is in in an inwardly curved arm 3. This arm 3 at its free end carries a jaw 4 of desired dimensions and which jaw may be as preferred. The rear end of the member I, or that end portion remote from the jaw 4, is continued by an outwardly disposed arm 5 which constitutes a hand grip. The central portion of the base member I rigidly carries a peripendicularly related post 6 herein disclosed, as rectangular in cross-section. This post is of material length, and having contact with the forward face a of this post 6 is a relatively long fiat face b at the inner or rear end of an elongated arm 1. This arm 1 is provided at its forward extermity with a jaw 8 for coaction with the jaw 4. The 'arm 1, as illustrated in Fig. 1, is outwardly curved as may be preferred and the rear end portion of the arm 1 is laterally enlarged, as at 9, to allow the face I) to be of considerable length to assure the proximity to the hand grip 5.

The head ii is provided in its upper or-outer portionwith a fiat face It! which, when the lever l8 isswung away from the hand grip 5 as illustrated by broken lines in Figure 1, will closely apprcach the rear edge face of the post 6 and allow the arm 1 to be shifted or adjusted lengthwise of the post fi as may be desired and as may be required by the thickness of the plate or other work to be gripped between the jaws 4 or 8. This face l9of the head I1, as herein disclosed, is on. an angle of approximately 45 with respect to the longitudinal axis of the lever 18, and the portion of the head I! immediately below the forward or lower end of the face I9 is formed to provide an inbow face 20 which results in the provision of the fingers or lugs 2| which serve as fulcrums to allow the convenient swinging or rocking of the lever l8 as desired. It is to be pointed out that the spring members M serve to maintain therear portion 9 of the arm 1 and the head I! of the lever l8 in tight contact with the post 6, yet said springs will sufficiently yield to allow the desired swinging or rocking of the lever l8 to assure desiredclamping action of the jaws 4 or to allow the desired adjustment of the arm lengthwise of, the t 6 I The post 6, at a desired point intermediate its ends, has extending outwardly from its side faces the stop pins 22 with which contact the like to the intermediate portions [4 of the spring members M, and thus limit the extent of outward movement of the arm 1 and the lever 18 along the post 6.

The adjacent portions of the base member I and the extension 2 are outwardly enlarged to provide a lug or block 2|. This lug or block 2| is provided with a socket 22 facing or opening inwardly of the base member 1. adapted to have inserted therein an extremityof a ground cable, and said applied cable will be effectively held to the lug or block 2| by a binding screw 23 threading into said lug or block. It is believed to be obvious, however, that if preierredthe ground cable may be fastened within the socket 22 by soldering.

From the foregoing description it is thought to be obvious that a ground clamp constructed in accordance with our invention is particularly well adapted for use by reason of the convenience and facility with which it may be assembled operated.

We claim: I

1. A clamp of the class described comprising and an elongated member, ajaw carried by said m'em her, a post carried by and extending laterally from the member, an elongated arm having a rear face for contact: with a face of the post,- a

' rear face for contact with a face'o-f' thep'os't, a-

lever at the rear of the post, spring means connecting therear portion of the arm and the lever for maintaining the arm and lever in close con tact with the-post, a jaw carried by the arm for coaction with the jaw of the member, the lever havinga fulcrum mg for direct contact the adjacentface of the post, and means'for limiting the movement of thearm and lever outwardly along the' post. i

This socket 22 is 3. A clamp of the class described comprising an elongated member, a jaw carried by said memher, a post extending laterally from said member, an arm having a rear face contacting with a face of the post, a jaw carried by the arm for coaction withthe jaw of the member, spring members secured to the rear portions of the arm and extending across and rearwardly of the post, a lever, means for securing the spring members to the lever, saidspring members operating to normally v maintain the rear face of the arm, and the lever Jinclose contact with the post, the post having a fulcrum lug for direct contact with the post.

.anelongatedmember, a jaw carried by said mem- ,bfer apost extending laterally from said member,

anarm having a rear face contacting with a face of the post; a jaw carried by the arm for coaction with the jaw of the member, spring members secured to the rear portions of the arm and extending across and rearwardly ofthe post, a lever, means for securing the spring members to the lever, said spring membersoperating to normally maintain the rearface of-the arm; and the lever in close contact withthepost, the post having a fulcrum" lug for-"direct contact with the post, each or the spring members being substantially U- shaped -in=form-.-

51A clamp of the class'-described-comprising an elongated member, a jaw-carried by said'membar, a; post extendin-g laterally fromsaid member an armhaniing a rear face contacting with a tac'e of the post, a jawfcarried' by the arm for coaction with the jaw of the 'member, spring memberssecured to'th'e' rear portions of the arm and 'extendingw acrossand rearwardly ofthe post;

a lever} means: for securing the springmembers 

